Ok so by now after the tutorial shows “Intro to Artlantis” and “Artlantis 101” you’re probably starting to get the hang of it, experimenting further with shaders and rendering a few scenes. Now you can test your knowledge on an Artlantis Rendering Contest, created Design8 and Artlantismedia.nl. There is no modelling involved just download a ready-made model and render it to the bone! Continue Reading... >>

So this is a followup show to ACM006 - intro to Artlantis, where I explored what Artlantis is and why it’s such a fantastic piece of software - especially for architects. It would probably be best to check out that show for a quick introduction before diving into this one, but still this is just going through the basics. Abvent Artlantis is recognised as the fastest and most powerful solution for photo-realistic rendering and animation developed for architects and designers. This show will bring you up to speed on lots of the functions and capabilities of this great piece of software!

I’m exploring how to download the Artlantis 3 trial from the Artlantis site as well as MyArchicad.com - where I downloaded the Archicad 13 trial in the Archicad 101 show. If you’re a student or teacher, just like with Archicad you can apply for a free 1-year educational license for Archicad and Artlantis from myarchicad.com.

In addition to the trial, I download the Archicad to Artlantis exporter - enabling me to save my 3D Archicad model into an Artlantis one, so I can edit and render it. Next I export the 3D building model I created in show ACM005 from Archicad, import it to Artlantis, and give a quick overview of the general interface. I then add some shaders to the model from the Catalog - Artlantis’s great object manager - while replacing some of the Archicad materials with the more sophisticated Artlantis shaders, setting the scene with the heliodon and cloud formations, and then finally rendering a scene for final output.

Abvent Atlantis is recognised as the fastest and most powerful solution for photo-realistic rendering and animation developed for architects and designers, used by roughly 65,000 users in 80 countries, in 7 languages.

It’s not a full blown modelling + rendering program like 3DS Max or Cinema4D, but a stand-alone rendering application, as it has simple tasks and does them awesomely well! This is due to its rendering engine developed especially for architecture, offering accuracy and speed unmatched by any other product on the market.

In this introduction I go through a quick intro of Artlantis 3, the reasons why it’s sometimes more suitable for architectural visualisation, the two versions (Artlantis R + Artlantis Studio), some of the amazing features it offers - including the innovative and superfast radiosity preview, the drag+drop process of adding objects and shaders to your model, water animation + interactive cloud formations, + more.

Plugins : Artlantis plays very well with others, being able to interface directly with popular 3D CAD + BIM applications like ArchiCAD, VectorWorks, SketchUp Pro + more. But with the recent addition of the DWF, OBJ and FBX import formats and updated DXF, DWG and 3DS plug-ins, Artlantis seamlessly interacts with all the leading CAD software as well.

Finally I mention the extensive media, shader, and object libraries offered in both versions, as well as where you can download or buy some additional libraries to use in your model, including the Artlantis Media Libraries and ObjectsOnline.com, a virtual product library created by Abvent offering the largest collection of 3D parametric objects dedicated to architecture and design.

I’d like to thank everyone again for all your fantastic emails and comments about the show, on iTunes, Facebook and all the online video sites. Please keep ‘em coming! If you download the iTunes version, I've added chapters into the video so you can jump to any part you want.

This time we get a bit deeper into Archicad and go step-by-step how to draw up a simple building + get used to the tools of the workflow. It's a simple design, nothing very exciting, but a good start to get you on your way to Archicad mastery. This is the longest video in the series - 22 minutes long - so get a nice cup of coffee ready. If you download the iTunes version you'll see I've added chapters into the video so you can jump back + forwards to whichever part you want. Enjoy the show!

In this episode I continue the Archicad series, firstly exploring the educational + professional licenses, downloading the trial versions + installing them, as well as Archicad 12 + 13 compatibility with mac + pc. Following with a tour of the basic interface, and the general workflow logic to get you started, we dive into one of the major parts of the Archicad interface - the “Navigator”, defining the “Project Map”, “View Map”, “Layout Book”, and “Publisher Sets”.

In this episode I introduce one of my favourite applications, Graphisoft Archicad the world’s leading 3D parametric design software for architects, interior designers and others in the design industry. It has established itself as a highly intuitive, flexible and mature product, with which over a million buildings have been designed.The show covers:

I’m very excited to get archiCADmonkey back on the bitwaves with my new website and revamped show. I’d like to firstly thank everyone for your patience, and especially all the great comments + feedback. It’s been over a year since my last show, as a lot has been going on since then. After a tough final year at university, I finally graduated from architecture in July. Since then I’ve been working in Greece + the UK as an architectual assistant, while redeveloping the show in my spare time.it’s more than just a screencast ... it's the archiCADmonkey blog!

So, the archiCADmonkey blog will feature the tutorial posts, some up to date information on the software I cover in the screencasts, along with useful CAD news and websites.The upcoming shows will cover introductions, tips + tricks of many of the established architectural programs, as well as some other useful applications on the mac + pc + iphone.

I have received a few requests about some advanced features of the programs, but I think that the evolution of the shows should reflect the learning path of the beginner to the experienced user. So the first shows will be focused on the basic principles + techniques for CADnewbies and will evolve to more advanced techniques for the more experienced and CADveterans.

In the first of the series we explore Google Sketchup. Most possibly the most intuitive three-dimensional design program, it offers unparalleled user friendliness, simple design tools and techniques. This allows the user to quickly draw up conceptual designs, while also having the ability to add extensive detail to the 3D model. Users can simply draw lines to create a traditional 2D CAD drawing, or take it a step further and quickly create 3D objects. Along with its seamless integration with Google Earth, it is a very powerful piece of software which practically anyone can learn and master. Following an overview of the program’s capabilities and main user interface we continue with some basic and essential techniques to get you started.

Welcome to archiCADmonkey, a screencast about everything CAD and beyond for Mac & PC, helping you design in two, three, and four dimensions to your full potential!

In the series we will explore essential programs, covering topics from 2D to 3D design, photo-realistic rendering and photo-manipulation, as well as hints and tips. Divided into Levels, the shows will introduce the basic concepts in Level 1, move on to intermediate technique in Level 2, to finally explore more advanced situations and in-depth tricks in Level 3.